Nearly half of Britons watch porn on unregulated sites since age verification crackdown, warns charity
Almost half of Britons have admitted to watching porn on unregulated websites since age verification checks became mandatory; More users could be led down a path to access child sexual abuse material, a charity has warned.
New research from the Lucy Faithfull Foundation has found that nearly 45 per cent of porn users in the UK have visited sites without age verification checks since the Online Safety Act came into force last summer.
The survey of more than 3,700 Britons found that 39 per cent of visitors to these sites had watched content that made them uncomfortable, and 40 per cent said what they saw had discouraged them from visiting the site altogether.
The charity dedicated to preventing online child sexual exploitation has warned that these sites could increase users’ exposure to harmful and illegal content.
Vicky Young, head of the charity’s Stop It Now anonymous helpline for people concerned about child sexual abuse in the UK and Ireland, said: Independent He said these unregulated websites risked becoming a pathway to indecent images of children.
“We work with people who view inappropriate images of children to try to address this behavior and support them to change their behaviour,” he said.
“One of the things people often tell us is that they started looking at legal adult pornography and their behavior increased. In part they were spending longer on the internet, but also the type of content they were looking at became more extreme and often younger, and that’s when they moved on to illegal behavior and looking at indecent images of children.”
“Because of this path, and this situation that keeps coming up in our conversations with people, we are concerned that if people access sites with riskier content, they actually have a higher chance of finding themselves accessing indecent images.
“Sometimes it may not be intentional to begin with, but what people tell us is that if they come across these images as part of their other pornography, that creates curiosity as well. There’s something about the risk that heightens the excitement and they don’t necessarily focus on just one image. They actually then start looking for more images.”
Almost a third (30 percent) of those surveyed said they were concerned about how much pornography they use. This rate was highest among young men aged 18 to 24 (51 per cent), whom the Foundation warned were at risk.
Nearly 47 percent of survey respondents said they had reduced the amount of pornography they watched since age verification rules came into effect, and more than half (55 percent) said these rules had made them think about their porn use.
This follows a report from communications watchdog Ofcom last month that showed a sharp and sudden drop in visits to popular online porn sites from July 25, when the highly effective age assurance (HEAA) came into force. However, the use of VPN (virtual private network) software that can bypass viewing restrictions has increased.
Pornhub, the UK’s most visited adult content provider, saw a 1.5 million viewership drop in annual figures when the regulator compared 11.3 million viewers in August 2024 to 9.8 million viewers in the same month this year.
Meanwhile, VPN usage has more than doubled in the UK following age verification requirements; It rose from around 650,000 daily users before July 25 and reached over 1.4 million by mid-August 2025. The figure gradually dropped to around 900,000 in November.
Dr D., head of the foundation’s psychology department and associate professor at the University of Roehampton. Alexandra Bailey said: “Age verification is vital to protect children and we fully support it. But we also need to recognize that some adults choose riskier sites to avoid age checks. These sites can expose people to harmful material, including illegal content depicting child sexual abuse. Even if you’re not looking for it, you may come across it and it can have serious life-changing consequences.”
“Age verification also encourages adults to think about their online behavior, which can be a good thing for people concerned about their porn use. But we also need to address the risks of those turning to sites that evade the new regulations.
“Every day, our counselors speak to people whose use of pornography has reached a much more harmful level. We know shame can stop people from reaching out, but confidential help is available. If you’re worried about your own behavior or someone else’s behavior, contact Stop Now before it’s too late.”
You can contact the Stop Now helpline on 0808 1000 900 or via secure email and live chat. website.
